Dancing Away
by Kimiz
Summary: Hiro watches as she talks quietly to the Konoha nin. It's discrete and hardly a romantic gesture, but when they turn, their hands clasp tightly, fingers intertwining in a strong grip. He smiles. Back then she had been everything. Back then. ShikaTema


**A/N**: This was inspired by 'Dancing Away With My Heart' by Lady Antebellum. I have an alternate version that's much more dramatic, but I like this one better. Maybe I'll put it up later.

**Dancing Away**

_**...**For me you'll always be eighteen, and beautiful, and dancing away with my heart**…**_

Hiro smiled at his wife, pointing her the veil store in the market. He watched with growing amusement her delighted expression as she touched the smooth colorful fabric. Being from Iwa, she had never seen anything of the sort. He had grown up in the middle of the colors, smells and sounds of the market, he had grown to admire and respect the harsh nature, and love the little shows of beauty the desert gave. He hadn't realized how much he had missed home until he crossed the gates and felt the familiar buzz of the busy citizens and the heat of the scorching sun fighting the wind heavy with sand for the privilege of damaging his skin.

His wife looked like a child during Christmas, her dark eyes shining in mesmerizement at all the pretty artifacts. Hiro guessed his pocket would be considerably lighter by the end of the day, but he would indulge her. She had, after all, traveled days to get to know his village, without ever complaining about the long trip. She held onto his arm, pouting adorably while asking him to negociate a pretty midnight blue shawl, made of glittery see-through fabric. It was very pretty, indeed, and she would look quite stunning in it. He glared at her half-heartedly just to see her pout some more. He laughed when she did just that, blinking quite comically. He dropped the frown and pulled his wallet.

He started negociating the price, in good old Suna fashion, arguing back and forth with the owner of the tent for how much the shawl was worth, while his wife twirled around him, staring wide eyed at everything. He finally won the merchant over, getting a warm smile and a pat on the back. He handed his wife the shawl and she readily threw it over her shoulders. He laughed and let her lace her arm through his.

"Where will you take me now?" she asked, batting eyelashes jokingly as they toured through the streets, leaving the market behind and turning corners into a more secluded area.

"I have to report to the Kazekage now, and then we can tour some more." He explained. She acquiesced, humming softly.

"We're going there now?"

"Yes. To the Kazekage Tower."

"Where's that?"

"We're almost arriving, it's the biggest round building, it's got a balcony and a red sign. Hard to miss." He joked.

"Oh, that one? The one with the woman on the front?"

Hiro averted his eyes from her to see where she was pointing. His breath caught in his throat and his heart just about stopped.

It was _her._ He hadn't seen her in six years, but he was sure. Leaning against the wall, shoulders straight, arms crossed, chin tipped upwards in arrogance. Her blonde hair glimmered in the setting sun, looking like liquid gold. Her curls were pulled back in a sloppy bun and it surprised him. He had never seen it out of the four ponytails. Her golden skin looked as smooth as always, though, and her deep teal eyes turned an absurd shade of jade in that light. He watched, mesmerized, as his eyes absorbed the image in front of him, replacing the picture of a pretty girl he used to know with that of the beautiful woman she had become.

"What are you looking at, dear?" his wife called, waking him up from his trance. He shook his head, trying to think coherently.

"Nothing, I… I just remembered something." His wife's smile hardened.

"Do you know her?" she asked. He considered playing dumb, but figured it would only make matters worse.

"Yes. We used to be… Friends of sorts." He said hesitantly. Her grip on his arm tightened and her fixed smile turned to him.

"You should go say hi."

The thought had crossed his mind, he wouldn't deny it. For one fleeting moment he had wanted to walk up to her, talk to her, watch her eyes light up in recognition, see the reflection os his memories on them. He just wanted to see she still remembered who he was, because he surely remembered her. Sabaku no Temari wasn't something you could forget.

"Go." His wife encouraged in a tight voice.

"Well, I…"

Fate decided for him, though. At that moment, a man left the Kazekage Tower. A tall, lean, dark-haired man, with a funny ponytail and a Konoha hitai-ate tied around his arm. The man slouched slightly, dragging his feet, he stopped a few steps from the door, turning around to look at the woman. Hiro felt his throat ache and his jaw clench, his protective side rose to action. Six years apart or not, she had once meant a lot to him, one false move and the man would find out just how tricky the Suna desert could be. The man said something and she looked up. He was bracing himself for a fight when she did something that caught him completely off guard.

She smiled. A rare, radiant smile that lit up her whole face, making her suddenly look stunning. She had always been pretty, but in that moment, she really took his breath away.

"Who is she?" his wife inquired, sounding more upset than angry. He swallowed hard, coughing once to regain composure.

"She is Sabaku no Temari, our Ambassador and the Kazekage's sister." He said generically. She seemed to want to know more, but in that moment the Konoha nin extended an arm in the woman's direction and she abandoned her position on the wall, walking up to him.

Hiro watched, heart beating fast, the two of them talk quietly to each other. Her eyes were soft, soft like they had never been before, and it was making his head turn. He could remember it, the hushed whispers, the stolen kisses, the secret glances. He'd been there. He had known she would probably have someone else, he just didn't know it would have that effect on him.

"Oh, is that her boyfriend?" his wife asked, sounding entirely too relieved.

"I… I wouldn't know." He admitted.

The couple unconsciously answered her, though. The man said something that made the girl burst into laughter. He blushed to the roots of his hair and readily turned to leave, but she held him back, putting a hand on his shoulder and turning him back to her. He crossed his arms and looked away. She pulled at his arm, disentangling them and stepping closer. She spoke to him quietly, with a smile on her face that soon infected him. She stepped back and he nodded towards one of the streets. They headed for it, turning their backs to the two watching them.

It had been quiet and discrete and hardly a romantic gesture, but when they turned, their hands clasped tightly, fingers intertwining automatically in a strong grip.

He felt strange. It wasn't a happy feeling, but it wasn't really a sad one either. You could say he felt nostalgic. He was back in his hometown, abated by the sights, smells and feelings of when he was younger and a part of it all. He had been left vulnerable for a second, and quite honestly, Temari had been a blow to his defenses, because back then… She had been everything.

But… That was back then. Now…

He looked down to his wife's searching eyes and smiled, kissing her forehead. She breathed deeply, smiling back at him a relieved smile. He offered her his hand, one she held tightly as they walked into the Tower.

Things were different for the both of them. The past was the past and he wouldn't open old wounds. Their life lines had tangled a long time ago, but it wasn't in their fate to remain together. They had gone their separate ways, met other people, moved on, and he was in peace with the choices they'd made. He wouldn't go back and change anything.

But he would hold on to that old memory of a pretty girl turning beautiful, taking his breath away with a smile and dancing away with his heart.

**A/N**: I am really, really fond of this one. I like the atmosphere and lack of drama of it. I like Hiro's wife, my sis said she was a bitch, but she's just defending her territory! xD And now that we're done here, I can comment. You have NO idea how many times I rewrote the ShikaTema interaction. I kept making them kiss, or hug, or walk away all coupley-tangly, but I realized it's not really their style. To me, they are all about subtle love. So I settled for the hands clasping tightly, which I think sums them up. 'Not shouting to the world, but there if you look for it.'

Tell me what you think, and happy New's Year in advance since I might not update anything new for a while. Much happiness, may many more people discover the ShikaTema awesomeness and bring more stories about them! And another ShikaTema filled year for us all!


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